You Are the Reason
by multifandomhaven
Summary: If I could turn back the clock I'd make sure the light defeated the dark. I'd spend every hour, of every day, keeping you safe.


The drive from Forks to La Push wasn't particularly long, but the winding curves of the forest made up for it tenfold. Natalie tried to navigate the snowy roads as best she could, but the thick blanket of snow, coupled with the fat, powdery flakes that fell still from the sky, did not agree with her old tires. She knew she needed to have them changed but the little shop at the edge of La Push didn't pay as much as she needed to do so, but she managed.

Or so she thought.

Natalie's car began to slide into a curve, the back of the vehicle fishtailing from one side to the other. She clutched at the steering wheel, desperate to keep the car in the road, but it was in vain. Everything around her began to spin into a vicious circle, not once or twice, but three times, before the car slid, driver's side, into a mighty, unforgiving tree.

The airbag deployed, but didn't help when the side of Natalie's head cracked against the window. She heard a loud noise, something blaring. Once she gathered her bearings she opened her eyes, the sound of the horn echoing throughout the forest almost drowning her. She felt a warmth from her temple and moved her hand up to feel - there was an angry gash along her left eyebrow. She moved her weight off the wheel and began to panic.

Natalie gripped the handle and jiggled it to no avail, that side of the car was pinned against the tree, so she crawled over to the passenger side and opened the door. Her left arm felt weakened, but she continued to push herself - she needed to get out of the car, that much she knew. There weren't many people on the road that day, for good reason, and if she didn't walk to find help she would likely freeze to death before she was found.

Once she stood and made sure she wasn't going to slip she began her trek towards the reservation.

* * *

Some of the pack members were making their rounds, just to ensure the safety of the reservation. The Cullens had honored their end of the pact so far, but none of them really trusted them - except for Jacob Black.

Paul Lahote was no Jacob - not in any way. He didn't care what the pact entailed, he knew the bloodsuckers weren't worthy of their trust. He ran through the trees quickly, his eyes scanning the perimeter with each heavy footfall.

The birds were singing and the snow kept falling. The cold had began to burn his toes, but he still kept running. He lost himself in nature momentarily, basking in the smells of the earth. It was a quiet day on the reservation that day, almost unnervingly so - until it wasn't.

The squealing of tires caused his Paul's to perk, it wasn't far, he could tell. Then a loud crash sounded, he threw his head back and let out a long winded howl. He quickly transitioned into his natural form and ran toward the closest pack member's house - Jared's. They all kept a bag of clothes stashed near their homes, just in case something were to happen - Paul always shrugged it off and called it stupid, but in the heat of the moment he was thankful that the decision had been made, and enforced, by Sam.

Once he'd ransacked the bag of clothing he ran back toward the noise. He dodged through the trees once more, this time as a human, and pulled the jacket over his bare chest, not taking care to bother with the buttons on it.

A car sat crumpled against a tree on the road. From the nearly covered tire tracks on the road he could see that the driver had clearly lost control of the vehicle, and it wasn't surprising, honestly. The conditions of the roads were horrible.

Paul jogged up to the window to look in and found no one in the car. He cursed and ran up the road, suddenly aware of the footprints that led away from the crash. He squinted through the snowstorm and saw a figure stumbling on the side of the road just a little further up.

"Hey," he called through the blistering wind. "Hey, wait up!"

The figure stopped moving and turned toward him. He could make out a light colored coat layered over a pair of dark jeans.

"Oh, thank God," he heard them wheeze.

He moved quickly though the slush. He saw hair long, blonde hair curls peeking out from beneath the hood they'd pulled over their head - it was a girl, maybe his age, he couldn't tell yet. "Are you alright?"

She raised her head slightly, her azure eyes boring into his. Paul's breath hitched. He blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of the situation he'd been given. Paul was sure he was about to have a heart attack, or break down, something. Slowly, as if fate was taunting him, everything around her faded and he was left staring at the beautiful stranger.

 _Oh shit._

He swallowed back his emotions and looked her over, the blood coming from her temple, staining some of her blonde strands red and the way her left arm was unnaturally bent just below her elbow - he felt ill, just as physically as he did mentally, with the way she was painfully curled in on herself, the way she _wheezed_.

"W-What is it?"

"Asthma." The girl clutched at her chest, her eyes wide. "Inhaler," she gasped.

Paul felt himself turn toward the car upon instinct. "In the glove compartment?"

"Purse," she rasped.

He ran back through the snow and nearly ripped the door from the car in a desperate attempt to open it. His eyes zeroed in on a large red bag and he grabbed it, shutting the door with a force he was sure rattled the entire Earth. He wasted no time with walking, instead he darted back toward the wheezing girl as quickly as his legs would allow, his large hand searching the bottom of her purse for the inhaler.

When he finally found it he reach the inhaler to her and shouldered her large, red purse. She pulled the cap off and inhaled two quick puffs.

"Thank you," she wheezed.

Paul ignored her thanks when he saw her shudder and shrugged the jacket off his frame. He wrapped it carefully around her shoulders, noting how it swallowed her almost completely. He winced when she gasped and tears filled her eyes. He placed his hand on her back softly, afraid that if he used too much force he'd break her completely.

"Hey, let's get you inside, call an ambulance," he told her gently, placing her purse back onto his shoulder. "What's your name?"

The girl attempted to calm her breathing, again taking a puff from her inhaler. "Natalie."

"Come on, Natalie, I won't let anything else bad happen to you."

 _Ever again_.


End file.
